Dubai: Ahead of the ‘World Heart Day’ on the 29th of September, observing the month as a ‘Cardiac Care Month’, Zulekha Hospital hosted a Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery Conference in Dubai.

On the occasion the frontline staffs from Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services (DCAS) including Ms. Maryam Khamis Oafi - Head of Professional Training Section, Mr. Faris Bardan - Operations Department, Dr. Dastagir Chitapure - Basic Life Support Instructor and Mr. Shahid Parvaiz - Senior Basic Life Support Instructor were honored for their commitment as first responders and their support to the “Save Hearts” initiative. This continuous awareness program in the interest of the well-being of the UAE residents trains individuals on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills which can save a life during a cardiac emergency. With support from certified trainers of DCAS, alongside their own team Zulekha Hospital has hosted CPR training sessions across multiple corporate organizations, government offices, schools, colleges, sports clubs and many other corporate and public gatherings with an aim to teach every individual the lifesaving skill of CPR.

Various speakers from the Cardiac Center of Excellence included Dr. Satish Kandasamy - Specialist Interventional Radiology, Dr. Mohamed Shehata - Consultant Interventional Cardiology, Dr. Mohamed Ahmed Helmy - Consultant Cardiac Surgery, Dr. Mohammed Faheem - Specialist Emergency Medicine, Dr. Mohamed Abdelhamid - Specialist Critical Care Medicine, and Dr. Shaheen Ahmad - Specialist Interventional Cardiology who highlighted the significance of right diagnosis, reporting, documentation, equipment, advances in treatments and expertise while managing a cardiac emergency.

The recent UAE National Health Survey identified CVDs as a significant health burden in the UAE, with physical inactivity, hypertension, obesity, and tobacco use being the top risk factors for CVD-related death.

Zulekha Hospital advocates prevention of obesity, hypertension, avoiding consumption of high-fat and high sugar food that are major causes of CVDs. Year on year, the hospital staff are encouraged to actively participate in the Dubai Fitness Challenge to realize the need to take care of oneself. Zulekha Hospital is also the medical partner of Dubai Women’s Run this year, encouraging women’s wellness and has collaborated with Dubai Sports Council supporting various sports activities undertaken by the government for the residents of UAE.

The hospital facilities in Dubai and Sharjah manage critical cardiology treatments and procedures, both invasive and non-invasive with a multidisciplinary team of experts and state-of the-art infrastructure.